以前

Chinese

		to use; according to; so as to to use; according to; so as to; in order to; by; with; because; Israel (abbrev.)	front, forepart; in front; past front, forepart; in front; past; former; previous; last; before; preceding; earlier; ago; future; time ahead; first; top; battlefront; to move forward
trad. (以前)		以	前
simp. #(以前)		以	前

Pronunciation

• Mandarin

  (Standard)

  (Pinyin): yǐqián

  (Zhuyin): ㄧˇ ㄑㄧㄢˊ

  (Dungan, Cyrillic and Wiktionary): йичян (yiči͡an, II-I)

• Cantonese (Jyutping): ji⁵ cin⁴

• Hakka

  (Sixian, PFS): yî-chhièn

  (Meixian, Guangdong): yi¹ qiên²

• Northern Min (KCR): ǐ-chîng
• Eastern Min (BUC): ī-*sèng
• Southern Min

  (Hokkien, POJ): í-chêng / í-chûiⁿ / í-châiⁿ

  (Teochew, Peng'im): i² zoin⁵ / i² zain⁵

• Wu (Shanghai, Wugniu): ¹i-zhi; ¹i ⁶zhi
• Xiang (Changsha, Wiktionary): i³ zienn²

---

• Mandarin
  • (Standard Chinese)⁺
    • Hanyu Pinyin: yǐqián
    • Zhuyin: ㄧˇ ㄑㄧㄢˊ
    • Tongyong Pinyin: yǐcián
    • Wade–Giles: i³-chʻien²
    • Yale: yǐ-chyán
    • Gwoyeu Romatzyh: yiichyan
    • Palladius: ицянь (icjanʹ)
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /i²¹⁴⁻²¹ t͡ɕʰi̯ɛn³⁵/
  • (Dungan)
    • Cyrillic and Wiktionary: йичян (yiči͡an, II-I)
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /i⁵¹ t͡ɕʰiæ̃²⁴/

    (Note: Dungan pronunciation is currently experimental and may be inaccurate.)

• Cantonese
  • (Standard Cantonese, Guangzhou–Hong Kong)⁺
    • Jyutping: ji⁵ cin⁴
    • Yale: yíh chìhn
    • Cantonese Pinyin: ji⁵ tsin⁴
    • Guangdong Romanization: yi⁵ qin⁴
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /jiː¹³ t͡sʰiːn²¹/
• Hakka
  • (Northern Sixian, incl. Miaoli)
    • Pha̍k-fa-sṳ: yî-chhièn
    • Hakka Romanization System: i^ˊ qien^ˇ
    • Hagfa Pinyim: yi¹ qian²
    • Sinological IPA: /i²⁴ t͡sʰi̯en¹¹/
  • (Southern Sixian, incl. Neipu)
    • Pha̍k-fa-sṳ: yî-chhièn
    • Hakka Romanization System: (r)i^ˊ qien^ˇ
    • Hagfa Pinyim: yi¹ qian²
    • Sinological IPA: /(j)i²⁴ t͡sʰi̯en¹¹/
  • (Meixian)
    • Guangdong: yi¹ qiên²
    • Sinological IPA: /i⁴⁴⁻³⁵ t͡sʰiɛn¹¹/
• Northern Min
  • (Jian'ou)
    • Kienning Colloquial Romanized: ǐ-chîng
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /i²¹ t͡sʰiŋ³³/
• Eastern Min
  • (Fuzhou)
    • Bàng-uâ-cê: ī-*sèng
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /i³³⁻²¹ sɛiŋ⁵³/
• Southern Min
  • (Hokkien: Xiamen, Zhangzhou, General Taiwanese, Singapore)
    • Pe̍h-ōe-jī: í-chêng
    • Tâi-lô: í-tsîng
    • Phofsit Daibuun: yzeeng
    • IPA (Kaohsiung): /i⁴¹⁻⁴⁴ t͡siɪŋ²³/
    • IPA (Xiamen, Taipei): /i⁵³⁻⁴⁴ t͡siɪŋ²⁴/
    • IPA (Zhangzhou): /i⁵³⁻⁴⁴ t͡siɪŋ¹³/
    • IPA (Singapore): /i⁴²⁻²⁴ t͡seŋ²⁴/
  • (Hokkien: Quanzhou)
    • Pe̍h-ōe-jī: í-chûiⁿ
    • Tâi-lô: í-tsuînn
    • Phofsit Daibuun: yzvuii
    • IPA (Quanzhou): /i⁵⁵⁴⁻²⁴ t͡suĩ²⁴/
  • (Hokkien: Tong'an, Kinmen)
    • Pe̍h-ōe-jī: í-châiⁿ
    • Tâi-lô: í-tsâinn
    • Phofsit Daibuun: yzvaai
    • IPA (Tong'an): /i³¹⁻²² t͡sãi²⁴/
    • IPA (Kinmen): /i⁵³⁻²⁴ t͡sãi²⁴/
  • (Teochew)
    • Peng'im: i² zoin⁵ / i² zain⁵
    • Pe̍h-ōe-jī-like: í tsôiⁿ / í tsâiⁿ
    • Sinological IPA ^(key): /i⁵²⁻³⁵ t͡sõĩ⁵⁵/, /i⁵²⁻³⁵ t͡sãĩ⁵⁵/

Note:

• i2 zoin5 - Chaozhou, Shantou;
• i2 zain5 - Jieyang.

• Wu
  • (Northern: Shanghai)
    • Wugniu: ¹i-zhi; ¹i ⁶zhi
    • MiniDict: i^平 zhi; i^平 zhi^去
    • Wiktionary Romanisation (Shanghai): ¹i-xxi; ¹i ³xxi
    • Sinological IPA (Shanghai): /i⁵⁵ ʑi²¹/, /i⁴⁴  ʑi²³/
• Xiang
  • (Changsha)
    • Wiktionary: i³ zienn²
    • Sinological IPA ^(key) (old-style): /i⁴¹ t͡si̯ẽ¹³/
    • Sinological IPA ^(key) (new-style): /i⁴¹ t͡ɕi̯ẽ¹³/

Noun

以前

1. earlier times; formerly; previously

Synonyms

edit

• 上早 (Hakka)
• 先前 (xiānqián)
• 先行 (xiānxíng) (literary)
• 其先 (qíxiān) (literary)
• 前往 (qiánwǎng) (literary)
• 原在 (Hakka)
• 古者 (gǔzhě) (archaic)
• 向來 / 向来 (xiànglái) (archaic)
• 嘗 / 尝 (cháng) (literary, or used in compounds)
• 在前 (zàiqián)
• 家先 (Hakka)
• 往擺 / 往摆 (Hakka, Hokkien)
• 往擺仔 / 往摆仔 (Hokkien)
• 往者 (wǎngzhě) (literary)
• 往過 / 往过 (Hokkien)
• 往過仔 / 往过仔 (Hokkien)
• 從前 / 从前 (cóngqián)
• 早先 (zǎoxiān)
• 早年所 (Hokkien)
• 早時 / 早时 (Hokkien)
• 昔日 (xīrì) (literary)
• 昔時 / 昔时 (xīshí) (literary)
• 曾
• 曾經 / 曾经 (céngjīng)
• 當初 / 当初 (dāngchū)
• 舊擺 / 旧摆 (Singapore Hokkien)
• 舊早 / 旧早 (Singapore Hokkien)
• 過前 / 过前 (Hainanese)

 

Further reading

• “Entry #1349”, in 教育部臺灣台語常用詞辭典 [Dictionary of Frequently-Used Taiwanese Taigi] (overall work in Mandarin and Hokkien), Ministry of Education, R.O.C., 2024.

Japanese

Kanji in this term
以	前
い Grade: 4	ぜん Grade: 2
on'yomi

Pronunciation

• (Tokyo) いぜん [íꜜzèǹ] (Atamadaka – [1])
• IPA^(key): [izẽ̞ɴ]

Noun

以(い)前(ぜん) • (izen) 

1. (the one) before, formerly, ago
2. the former, the previous

References

• 2002, Ineko Kondō; Fumi Takano; Mary E Althaus; et. al., Shogakukan Progressive Japanese-English Dictionary, Third Edition, Tokyo: Shōgakukan, →ISBN.

Korean

Hanja in this term
以	前

Noun

以前 • (ijeon) (hangeul 이전)

1. hanja form^? of 이전 (“the time before now; heretofore”)